Corset-clamp.



s. E. FLORSHBIM.

GORSET CLAMP.

APPLICATION rum) MAR. 29, 19 0.

Patented Aug. 16, 1910.

" [n l/enforr UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FLORSHEIM, ONE-FOURTH TO LEONARD S. FLORSHEIM, AND ONE-FOURTH T0 NOR- MAN S. FLORSHEIM, ALL OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

CORSET-CLAMP.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed March 29, 1910. Serial No. 552,175.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SIDNEY E. F onsHnrM, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Corset-Clamps, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to improvements on the style of corset clamps shown and described in Letters Patent No. 938,567, granted to me November 2, 1909.

The objects of the present invention are, to provide locking members which will be of a resilient nature and serve to lock the clamping arms securely in position when said arms are lowered, and, at the same time, permit of considerable movement of the arms to and from the clamping block, to permit of the clamping of corsets of varying thicknesses; to cut away the upper face of the block so as to provide a concave surface extending longitudinally thereof, which facilitates the lacing operation; to provide stops for limiting the upward movement of the clamping arms; and to provide means for preventing movement of the block along the table or counter during the lacing operation.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of the clamp in normal position; Fig. 2, a side elevation showing one of the arms raised and partially broken away and the other arm lowered; Fig. 3, a section on line 3-3 of Fig. 1; and Fig. 1, a section on line 4-4 of Fig. 1, showing a corset in clamped position.

The clamp is for the purpose and of the general principle disclosed in the Letters Patent heretofore referred to, granted to me November 2, 1909, and consists of an elongated block 5, having its upper face 6 dished out to form a longitudinally extending, concave channel 6. The function of this channel, as will be seen more clearly by reference to Fig. 4:, is to permit the hand of the person lacing the corset to be easily inserted beneath the corset, and also to provide a guide-way against which the knuckles of the hand will rest and serve to guide the hand in its movements during the lacing operation.

The clamp is provided, at one end, with looking members 7, of any suitable and well known formation, which, as shown, are secured to a bar 8, which extends underneath the block, as shown in Fig. 3, and said bar is of a resilient nature, to permit of outward movement of the locking member. The bar is secured to the block by suitable fastening means 9 and lies within a groove or channel 9*, so that it will not protrude below the lower edge of the block when sprung downward, as shown in dotted lines of Fig. 3, which is the position they assume when retracted by the operator to permit of the withdrawal of. the corset, as such protrusion would tend to tilt or lift the block, which would be undesirable.

The clamping operation is performed by oppositely disposed, longitudinally extending arms 10, which, as shown, are positioncd so that a space 1.1 is provided between the side face of the block and the side face of the arm, in which space, as shown in Fig. l, the corset is held during the lacing operation. The arms terminate in handles 12, which perferably are bent to extend at right angles thereto, in order that they may not inconvenience the operator during the lacing operation, which they would do if they extended out in alinement with the arms, as the lacer is forced to reach over the block during the lacing operations, and the handles, if extending beyond the arms, would press against the body of the lacer and inconvenience him during the lacing operation.

The arms are pivoted to suitable ears 13 in a manner to permit movement toward and from the side of the block, so that the arms may readily adjust themselves to different thicknesses of material of which the corset is composed; and, as shown in Fig. 2, stop members 14 are provided, which limit the movement of the arms when they are swung out of clamping position.

Securedto the under face of the block are a plurality of suction cups 15, arranged preferably adjacent the front and rear edges of the block. As shown in Fig. 1, the cups adjacent the front edges are arranged in staggered relation, so as not to interfere with the movements of the bar 8 during its operation. Owing to the fact that this clamp is usually placed upon the polished surface of a counter or table, it is necessary for the practical operation of the device that some means be employed for preventi SIDNEY E. FLORSHEIM, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A$SIGNOR OF ONE-FOURTH TO SIMON ing the slipping of the block over the surface during the lacing operation; and these suction cups will grip the surface however polished it may be, and, at the same time, will not tend to mar the surface in any way.

The operation will be understood from the foregoing, but briefly is as follows: The

sections of the corset are first placed in desired position, and the arms 10 are then lowered to clamp the corset between their side face and the side face of the block, as shown in Fig. 4. The lacing is then inserted in the corset, and after such operation has been concluded, the locking members are sprung out by the fingers of the operator, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 3, and the arms swung upward in the position shown in Fig. 2, thus releasing the corset. It frequently happens that corsets vary considerably in thickness, and it is primarily to allow the arms to adjust themselves to corsets of different thicknesses that the springcontrolled locking members were devised. As will be seen, these locking members will permit of considerable movement of the arms out from the side of the block and yet serve to securely lock the arms when they are loweredto clamping position.

The locking members-of the present invention are not dependent upon the impinging of the arms to perform the locking operation, but are in the nature of spring clasps which overlie the arms.

I claim:

1. In a corset clamp, the combination of a long, narrow block, having its upper face provided with a longitudinally extending concave channel, presenting a continuous concave surface from side to side of the block to guide the hand of the operator during the lacing operation, arms pivoted to the side walls of said block near one end thereof, and spaced therefrom to afford a clearance for the interposition on each side of the block of a corset section, and locking devices secured to the block and positioned near its opposite end, and adapted to lock the arms when the arms are lowered to clamping position, substantially as described.

2. In a corset clamp, the combination of a long, narrow block, arms pivoted to the side walls of said block near one end thereof, and spaced therefrom to afford a clearance for the interposition on each side of the block of a corset section, a. resilient strap extending transversely across the under face of the block, said strap being secured to the body of the block at a point adjacent the middle thereof, the free ends of the strap extending upwardly and terminating in locking members comprising an overhanging ledge, beneath which the arms are held when lowered, the resilient member permitting the locking devices to spring away from the body of the block by the forcing of the arms thereagainst, whereby the arms may be held in secured position when spread a greater or less distance from the block by the insertion therebetween of fabric greater 01' less thickness, substantially described.

SIDNEY E. FLORSHEIM. lVitnesses MARGARET A. STEIN, TM. CAMPBELL. 

